On the Road to Damascus 2010

A study trip to Damascus in 2010 by Blood, Sweat, Drum + Bass’s founder Jens Christian “Chappe” Jensen resulted in the east-meets-west. On the Road to Damascus, the 27-piece Danish big band’s 5th recording. The labyrinths of the ancient walled city—with its souks, cobbled streets and towering mosques—and the rhythms of the modern metropolis alike may have provided the initial impetus, but Jensen’s love of modern textures—notably rhythmic—and his artful arrangements bestow a personal vision on these Arabian tales in much the same way that composer/bandleader Duke Ellington did on his own more exotic suites. –